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;
The Dorking Halls was built to house the Festival and opened in 1931;
'Song for a Spring Festival', written by RVW to celebrate the Festival's 50th year, may only be performed at the Festival;
RVW retired as Festival Conductor in 1953, but continued to conduct the St Matthew Passion until 1958;
Whilst living in Dorking, RVW composed works including Serenade to Music, Symphonies 4 - 7 and The Pilgrim's Progress;
RVW conducted the first combined choirs concert at the Festival on 10 May 1905;
The first competition day at the Festival exclusively for children was held in 1921;
In 1934 the BBC broadcast part of the Festival performance of Dream of Gerontius;
The first Festival performance of the St Matthew Passion in 1931 had 800 singers;

Events and tickets

Regulations

1. Choirs will be placed in Divisions as decided by the General Committee, who may also determine the maximum number of members of each choir who may sing in the competitions or concerts or both. All eligible choir members must sing in all classes (except the Ensemble and Open classes).

2. Any choir member wishing to participate in a Festival Competition:

(a) must be over 14 years of age

(b) must not earn his or her living by singing

(c) must be a regular member of a participating choir and have attended 8 full practices of that choir (6 in the case of students) during the current season

(d) may not compete as a member of more than one choir in the same Division and may not sing for that choir in more than one ensemble unless singing a different voice part.

3. Any choir member wishing to participate in a Festival Concert must have sung in the competitions and in the combined rehearsals for that concert unless permission for absence is given by the Festival Conductor.

4. Ensemble Class - each choir may enter no more than 3 ensembles and each ensemble may consist of any number between 4 and 12 singers.

5. Music for all classes (except the Open Class which is own choice) will be chosen by the Music Committee and choirs must be prepared to sing any part of each piece set for their Division by the adjudicator.

6. Choirs competing in the Open Class choose the music that they sing. The music chosen shall not last for more than four minutes in performance.

7. Any breach or potential breach of these regulations should be drawn to the attention of the Secretary or the Chief Steward for the class in question before the results for the class are announced. The matter shall then be referred immediately to a sub-group of three members of the Executive Committee (normally the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Secretary) who may discuss the matter with the Festival Conductor and Adjudicators (if appropriate) before deciding in their absolute discretion what action to take or penalty to impose.

The Festival also has a Safeguarding Policy for the safety of children and members of other vulnerable groups - see link below.